Ramone Wilson joined the Navy after graduating from Bedford High School in 2009, looking for career opportunities and a chance to see the world.

On March 11 of this year, Petty Officer Wilson had the opportunity to see just how an aircraft carrier, the George Washington, weathered the earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan.

The carrier was anchored at Yokosuka, south of Tokyo, for maintenance when the disaster hit. "It was pretty exciting, and worrisome," Wilson, 20, recalled in a recent phone call from aboard the George Washington. "You could feel the ship vibrating and rocking. It was pretty intense."

When the tsunami rolled in, it lifted the 97,000-ton ship seven feet, but the carrier was not damaged.

Wilson's usual duty as an intelligence specialist -- assembling and analyzing information from reports, maps and other sources -- may not be as earth-shaking, but it can be critical, said Lt. Commander Dave Hecht, a Cincinnati native who serves as the ship's public affairs officer.

When it comes to aircraft carriers, everyone thinks of the movie "Top Gun" and its emphasis on carrier pilots, Hecht said. "But those pilots would have no idea where to go if it weren't for guys like Petty Officer Wilson," he added.

The intelligence department provides kinds of information that the ship's captain and air commander need "to make the tactical decisions they make on a daily basis," Hecht said.

"It's a challenge to the mind," Wilson said of his work.

And though it took a while to get his "sea legs" and adjust to early reveilles, Wilson said he was pleasantly surprised that life aboard the carrier isn't as strict as sometimes portrayed in the movies.

In his off-duty hours he can watch movies on the ship's own TV station, listen to music or follow the Tribe's unusual winning season and chortle at the recent downfall of LeBron James and the Miami Heat.

And the best part? "Going to all the different ports that the ship visits," Wilson said.

This isn't his first time at sea, said his mother, Dianna Hunter, who said her son once went on a family cruise in the Caribbean.

Hunter said he had always been interested in joining the Navy, hoping to utilize his interest in computers. "He loved computers. He'd take a computer apart, and mess up my computer all the time," she joked.

And the Navy has been good for her son, she noted.

"He's totally changed. The Navy made a man out of him," she said. "I'm very proud of him. I mean very."

Discuss Directives LLCThe prototype for an Army edition of a deck of playing cards that Lisa Newburger, a Solon health and wellness educator, hopes to interest the Department of Defense in, as a way of dealing with military suicides.

Lisa Newburger, a licensed independent social worker/supervisor from Solon, hopes to interest the Department of Defense in a deck of playing cards she developed as a means of addressing the rising number of military suicides in recent years.

The cards are part of the "Heart2Hearts" product line she developed as founder of her own company, Discuss Directives, LLC, which offers seminars and training on end-of-life planning, suicide prevention and bullying.

Each card bears a message intended to provide a non-threatening way of getting someone to think about some of the issues associated with suicide, plus the toll-free number to a military suicide-prevention hotline.

These messages include, "I need to talk about . . ." on the nine of diamonds. Or "How am I really doing?" on the eight of hearts. Or, for younger vets, a text-message version, including "we r hving probs bc . . ." on the jack of clubs.

Newburger said the cards could be customized for different branches of the service, and offer contact numbers for suicide intervention resources at home or abroad.

"They're pretty much conversation-starters, whether a prompt for yourself to think about what's really going on with you, or talking to the chaplain, or even for families who see some of the signs and symptoms," she said. "It's something to use in a social setting."

Plus, an advantage of her product over other suicide prevention programs is that "people don't throw away a deck of cards," she added.

Newburger said she has been in contact with military officials at the Pentagon about the cards.

Statements on the cards were developed with the help of retired veterans, plus behavioral and suicide prevention experts, she said.

But Newburger would still like to fine-tune the product. "I'm looking for vets, Reservists, anyone who's willing to let me join them in a poker game, and take the time to look at this stuff and talk to me," she said.

If you'd like to play a few hands with Newburger, you can contact her at 440-591-8091, or via her web site, www.discussdirectives.com.

The National Alliance of Mental Health Greater Cleveland is accepting applications for a free, nine-week "Peer to Peer" course for veterans with mental illness that it will be offered this summer.

The course, provided by a grant from the Disabled American Veterans Charitable Trust Service, will cover such topics as understanding your diagnosis, stigma and discrimination, medications, coping strategies and relationships.

Course facilitators will be veterans with mental illness who work as peer specialists for the Department of Veterans Affairs. For details call Kari Kepic at 216-875-7776.

The 2,300 troops of the Ohio Army National Guard's 37th Infantry Brigade Combat Team will be deployed to Afghanistan in mid-October, along with two units from Texas.

Among the 20 units comprising the Brigade is the 237th Brigade Support Battalion with individual companies based in Northeast Ohio.

The Brigade was previously mobilized in 2008 for a year's deployment to Kuwait.

EVENTS

*A Veterans Virtual Career Fair will be offered Thursday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., on www.veteranscareerfair.com, free to veteran job seekers. The event, with 85 private employers and government agencies involved, is sponsored by UBM Studios Milcruit and VetSuccess.

*A ground-breaking ceremony for Valor Home, 30-bed facility for homeless veterans in Akron will be held at noon, Saturday, at a site donated by the city of Akron across the street from the Summit County's Veterans Service Commission, 1060 East Waterloo Road. Shuttle service will be provided.

The facility, planned to open near the end of the year, is being developed by Family & Community Services, Inc., in Ravenna, a nonprofit social service agency, with a grant from the Department of Veterans Affairs covering 65 percent of the project.

The agency is seeking donations of funds or volunteer-construction time to make up the remainder of the expense. Interested persons can contact Matthew Slater at 330-297-7027, ext. 343.

*Local psychologist Dr. Walter Knake Jr. who specializes in treatment of veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder, will speak at 7:30 p.m. for the Tuesday, July 5 meeting of Vietnam Veterans of America, Chapter 249, at the American Legion hall, 22001 Brookpark Road, Fairview Park.

*A variety of World War II vintage aircraft, aerobatic shows and other displays are planned for a "Gathering of Eagles Air Show" July 8, 9 and 10 at Lost Nation Airport, 38550 Jet Center Place (off Lost Nation Road), Willoughby.

Among the old warbirds expected are a B-17 and B-25 bomber, a TBM Avenger, Wildcat fighter and C-47 cargo plane. A Mig-17 jet also is slated for the event presented by the nonprofit U.S. Aviation Museum.

Hours are noon to 6 p.m. on July 8, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. July 9, and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. July 10. Admission is $10 for adults and $5 for children ages 5 to 11. Proceeds benefit the museum's education mission. Free parking is available. For details visit the web site www.usam.us.